I've done this, and yes, does take some time to break down. Bloke persuaded me to cut his hair at the weekend, I put that in the compost bin, much to his horror. There's a big clump of it right on the top, looks like I've buried him alive in there...

Well I've tried it. I think it did make a wee bit of difference.
Sandra 2

18 Apr 2012 15:08

Ouch. I guess it is sterile when it first comes out - it's only after it's hit the air that it starts being icky. Not sure I'm going to be caught lugging old milk bottles of wee up to the allotment though...

I add some to my bin about once a month. I use a bucket so that the neighbours don't know what I'm doing. It seems to help make some good compost, I'm sure it's better stuff since I started doing it 2 years ago. I also put in hair clippings when I cut hubbies hair and when I brush the dog. The smelly water from vases is full of good bacteria , and I read that the water veg has been cooked in helps break down as well. So I do all these.

If you soak a cushion's worth of feathers in a bucket of water for a couple of months, the resultant liquid is a good form of nitrogen, strain off and feed to whatever at the same rate to water as comfrey tea. the resultant mush can be either used as a mulch around border plants, or added to the compost. They break down easier. Empty contents of cushion into a bucket or bag it in net, and hold down with a piece of net and a brick. or if in a net bag then obviously just a brick. DO ON A STILL DAY.

We make our compost in a similar way to most of you - we also add our shredded paper and loo roll holders - trying to ensure that the ratio is even with the "green". We've also "made" the liquid plant food from nettles - but not too sure how to deliver the feed - at the roots or over the leaves,!!

I make a sort of (rather smelly) tea from nettles , i spray it on everything as a preventative for insects and fungi and pour it on the roots as a fertiliser. I get good crops of fruit and veg. but I still get black spot on roses and some years whitefly is a dreadful problem.

20 years ago I lived in a household where there was a bucket of sawdust kept in the bathroom for blokes to pee in. This added to the nutrient content of the compost heap and also conserved a good deal of water. No problem with smells as long as someone kept up the supply of sawdust.